Wednesday 5 June 2013

Bookworm: The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald

I started to read the first few pages of this book on my flight home from a recent short holiday. Then I got a bit busy and neglected it somewhat. 

As most people will be aware the Hollywood film version of this story has recently been released in the UK and I went to view it soon after its release. I'd never read the book.

Yes the film was a bit long and the costumes/scenes were rather OTT but overall I loved the film.

In fact after watching it I went onto my Kindle when home and downloaded the ebook to read.

After finally getting into the book properly I've read it very quickly and in fact found myself surprised how short this fictional piece was.

As per the film the story at the heart of this book is one I thoroughly enjoyed, although it did leave me feeling very sad.

I love the descriptions of the scenery, the characters and the looks of the time. 

Unfortunately my imaginings were heavily influenced by seeing the film and I found myself picturing Leonardo DiCaprio et al quite often and not forming my own ideas as I normally would when reading.

The style at times was a bit confusing and you felt a bit all over the place, but I feel this is intended - when the book's main narrator experiences his mad afternoon/evening with Tom Buchanan and his mistress the writing does reflect the chaos that ensued. 

Good points
Good escapism
Great descriptions
Strong characters
Compelling story

Not so great
Style sometimes not as expected
Order of events in the book sometimes I felt could have more impact if covered differently (however again this could be the influence of seeing how things were laid out on screen).

Overall a recommended read and a book I am glad I've now experienced, even if I have done things the wrong way round! 

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